Considerations for a Non-Dresser's Training Program

It's always critical to examine the training program you're prescribing for the players healthy to be in your lineup, but are a healthy scratch by the coach's decision. 

When designing a program for this group, there are many considerations such as: number of days between games, training goals beyond the "in-season" training program, psychology of the player and finding balance between the extra practice this group receives and training intensity. 

Keep in mind that you should never implement a program for non-dressers that will create high levels of muscular soreness and high levels of fatigue because many variables can change quickly which can cause them to be in the lineup. This article will discuss how to address these concerns so you can effectively create a training program that ensures the physical preparedness of the healthy scratch players.

Scheduling

It's always easier to plan an in-season training program when the competition schedule is consistent. At the higher levels of hockey, the week-to-week game schedule can change dramatically. It's only towards the latter part of the regular season where you'll see some consistency in games and off days. I typically train our non-dressers on a game day either after morning skate or during the game's first period. 

The first thing to consider before designing your non-dressers training plan is the amount of days between games.  If you have multiple days between games, then you can design and implement a more challenging workout.  If you're in a "back-to-back" game situation, it's smarter to focus your training towards more anaerobic conditioning and core training during the first game. This ensures players will not experience a high level of muscular soreness from weight training and with interval work, you mimic the shift-like format of a game. 

If the same players are out of the lineup for the second game of a back-to-back, then you can implement a workout focusing on strength and explosive work without fear of too much muscular soreness in the days to come. If the schedule has your team playing every other day, then you can use both a combination of metabolic conditioning and strength / explosive work to design your programs.

I have found that because of training consistency, our players can perform an intense in-season workout consisting of core training, corrective work, conditioning and strength training and not experience a high degree of muscular soreness which would hinder performance in a future practice or game. Training consistency for our athletes here in San Jose and for the younger players I worked with in the past ensures preparedness and the ability to maintain high levels of physical strength while not in the lineup.

Training goals

The most important goal for this specific group of players is to have them physically ready to enter a game at any time, especially in the playoffs. After players have been out of the lineup for an extended time, they feel a few games are needed to fully regain their level of "game shape" which will return with game experience. You too will find that an athlete's physical conditioning and strength can be fully expressed once that athlete returns to "game shape."

When I plan a non-dressers workout, I focus on strength work, core work, anaerobic conditioning, corrective work and muscle endurance workouts in the form of complexes and circuits. There are many more physical qualities that we train in the offseason. I choose to focus on the above areas in-season because I believe these are the physical qualities commonly utilized in hockey. The volume for all exercises never exceeds three sets due to concern for delayed onset muscle soreness.

Each strength coach needs to find a balance between getting a quality workout and not making it so intense that athletes are experiencing soreness for three or four days post- training. Your athletes will lose confidence in what they perform in the weight room if this occurs.

I have found when a player is out of the lineup, it's a great time to address any dysfunctional movement patterns. Each player performs a series of corrective exercises before their strength training prescription and metabolic prescription. If a particular non-dressing player finds a permanent spot in the lineup, then we continue to perform the corrective work on practice days to address their movement dysfunctions.

Psychology of the player

No matter what time of year, no matter how long a player has been out of the lineup, there will always be disappointment in their minds that they're not playing. How do strength coaches keep them motivated and focused on "staying sharp"? The monotony of extra practice and training can allow this group to loose focus and become disinterested.  We, as a staff, constantly change the script of drills, implement on-ice small area games and utilize two-week training phases so their bodies and minds stay fresh and in-tune.

There will be times when a player's disappointment can prevent them from investing 100 percent of their attention to the workout. This is where your skills as a communicator are tested. It's wise to address the situation with the athlete by explaining that he or she should "control the things that they can control." The head coach makes out the lineup and if they're overly concerned about something they have no power over, then they will lose focus on the two factors that will get them back into the lineup: improving their game and physically being ready. This approach is very effective because players are responsive to people who are trying to help make them better. 

Blending the practice plan and the training plan

As a coaching staff, you need to be in constant communication in regards to the phase of training this group is performing and understanding what type of extra practice this group will be doing on game day. If we're in a situation where the on-ice session was challenging, I back off the workout or cancel it. As a staff, this communication allows us to plan the best on-ice and off-ice schedule without burning players out. If communication isn't present between the coaches and the strength coach, this group can easily become over trained and burnt out mentally from the double practices and summer-like training plans. This is where the art of how you plan and coach is tested.

Non-dressing players are a special group who need to be physically ready and who need to stay mentally focused so they can step into a game at anytime. They may go long periods of time out of the lineup or they may be in-and-out of the lineup. Whatever the case, you must train this group to be physically ready with both off-ice strength work and extra practice with the coaching staff on a game day. 

The athletes' performance could be hindered when they return to the lineup if you do not consider training intensity. Be cautions not to overtrain this group and that your workouts don't create a high level of muscular soreness. The art of performance coaching is tested by trying to find the balance between too much training intensity and too little.